ARTICLES ABOUT VENTURE CAPITALISTS BY DATE - PAGE 4

BANGALORE: With Bill Gates , Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg to look up to as role models, many students on Indian campuses are now more inclined to startups than complete their college graduation. Take the case of 20-year old Pulkit Jaiswal, for instance. His passion for robotics led him to quit his course at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore and move to the Silicon Valley. Currently the founder and CEO of Singapore-based drone software services provider Garuda Robotics, he set shop last September and has raised a sizable amount from venture capitalists and angels from the Valley.

BANGALORE|HYDERABAD: Early-stage grants from the National Skill Development Corporation have helped spawn over half a dozen startups, propelling more entrepreneurs to look at ventures in skilling and education and, in turn, attracting the attention of venture capitalists. These ventures, which don't directly train people but address gaps in the system such as financing and placement, are looking for risk capital to fund growth, both in local and overseas markets . "We are also looking to raise a second round of funding to expand in the Middle-East, the Philippines and a few countries in Africa," said Himanshu Aggarwal, founder of Aspiring Minds , which provides professional certification and assessment services.

MUMBAI: As the average age of startup entrepreneurs steadily falls, India's venture capitalists and angel investors are entering college campuses across the country in the hope of discovering the next big venture. Take, for instance, Ritesh Agarwal, founder of OYO Rooms, which allows online booking of serviced rooms. Agarwal, who just turned 20, dropped out of University of London's India campus to start his venture and has already raised two rounds of funding . Now, his Delhi-based startup, which employs 25 people, is set to raise a larger round of financing from a top Silicon Valley VC and a Singapore-based venture firm.

BANGALORE: For many Indian founders, entrepreneurship is a drug that does not satisfy them with a single dose. And thanks to higher social acceptance and easier access to risk capital, getting their fix has never been easier. These entrepreneurs who are quick to spot market needs are embarking on multiple ventures to earn big by cutting costs and putting their domain knowledge to good use. Former Paypal executive Upasana Taku is a case in point. She cofounded Mobikwik in 2009, a digital wallet for online.

By Jyoti Pande Lavakare It's a brand new government, a time for new beginnings and to forge new friendships — so perhaps this is also a good time for the innovative Startup Dosti partnership, promoted by the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based non-profit foreign policy think tank, to rev up its act. And that's exactly what it seems to be doing. The Startup Dosti partnership, which seeks to build enduring relationships between entrepreneurs from India, Pakistan and its diaspora by providing cross-border support, mentorship, and seed funding to start-ups, has just completed one of its most ingenious initiatives — a tournament style business plan competition for early stage start-ups — by finalizing its three winners in Chiang Mai, Thailand on April 30. Even more exciting is that the entire proceedings were recorded live in a reality television format with 12 finalists and five judges (who doubled up as investors)

Four years ago, when software engineer Mridula Arora became a parent, she searched in vain for baby care products and woven apparel online. The 35-year-old who realised there was unmet demand for such products decided to set up her own venture, MyBabyCart.com, two years ago, with money she had saved up from her former job at Infosys. "We decided not to be dependent on funding," said Arora, whose Bangalore-based firm sells over 13,000 products sourced from entrepreneurs across the country who make handmade baby products such as designer party frocks, swim wear, socks, crochet shoes and headbands.

NEW DELHI/BANGALORE/MUMBAI: Entrepreneurs and investors in India expect better days ahead as the new Narendra Modi government at the Centre is likely to bring in stability in policy-making and boost confidence in the country's economy. The venture capital and private equity industry has seen a decline in investments over the past two years. Fund-raising by these investors fell to $2.25 billion (Rs 13,500 crore) across 26 funds in 2013, from the $3.88 billion (Rs 23,000 crore) raised by 34 funds in 2012, according to consulting firm EY. Venture capitalists are expecting foreign capital inflows to increase in 6-18 months with the likelihood of a bounceback in the IPO markets.

PUNE: Pune-based software product company LinguaNext has bagged the 'Best Value Proposition' at InTech 50 Summit, held recently in Bangalore. A panel of Chief Information Officers (CIOs), venture capitalists, and product leaders from previous successes shortlisted the top 50 product companies from 200 applications in the summit, which showcased promising start-ups from the Indian product ecosystem. LinguaNext's Linguify solution secured spot amongst the top 5 along with a "Best Value Proposition Award . The company develops enterprise applications to be localised into multiple languages without making any changes to the application code or database.

BANGALORE: Tarun Thadani , the proprietor of a vintage-themed pizza outlet in the posh Worli area of Mumbai, thinks he is making history. On Saturday, his restaurant Kolonial announced that its patrons can pay in bitcoins instead of rupees, thus laying claim to the title of being India's first eatery to accept the new-age currency. "Right now, people are a bit sceptical about bitcoins, but it's going to become big. I am testing the waters," said Thadani, 30, who is a bitcoin owner and a host to several bitcoin meetups at Kolonial.

HYDERABAD: The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE) has announced its seventh edition of the TiE Entrepreneurial Summit 2013 (TES), Asia's largest annual conference of the entrepreneurial ecosystem , to be held in Hyderabad from 18th December to 20th December 2013. Over 200 international speakers and 2,000 delegates from India and abroad will attend the conference. TES convenor and managing director of Focus Ventures , Ananth Rao , said the event would help fledgling entrepreneurs network with investors and experts.